Our generation is in trouble when it comes to dating. More now then ever we can see teenagers having sex early on or just plain disrespecting those of the opposite sex. This can take on many different forms, most of which can ultimately fall under the category of lustfullness. Whether it is just stealing a few glances and an girl or guy or if it involved serious problems, such as addiction to pornography, this is more commonplace now then it has ever been before.
So what does God have to say about these things? First off, let me assure you that although He is very much against what is taking place in the world in regards to lust, He is a loving God, who wil forgive us if we ask. During Jesus’ time on earth, he was quite clear about what his, and therefore God’s, will was towards such things. In fact, in the Gospels, Jesus tells us that if we even look at a woman lustfully, then we have committed adultery. In the original law handed down to Moses from God, one of the ten commandments is that we should not committ adultery. Therefore, every time we look at a woman lustfully, we break one of the ten commandments.
Now I know that this is coming down hard on the guys out there, but the fact is guys are often the ones who do this more often. Why is another quetsion entirely. Don’t get me wrong – women are just as capable of committing this, however, men are just much more likely to do so.
What often brings this type of behaviour on is a desire to be with someone. When a guy is lonely, they are much more likely to steal a few glances here and there or look at pornographic material. Although this is not always the case, more often times then not it is. So why do guys seem to do this especially during their teenage years? The answer is medical in its basic. During the teenage years, the pituitary gland is releasing hormones which cause the sex drive, which has been dormant until this time, to become active. When this happens, many times the brain begins to think more of sexual activity and other things that have to do with long-term, married relationships. This causes the brain to go into turmoil – the man has been taght to respect women and yet all he can think of is the curved on their bodies and how this is the first time he has ever noticed them. Due to this, he begins to fantasize what a girl would look like without her clothing on. When this is no longer enough, he moves onto the next stage of having to go onto the internet and look for pornographic content. As the internet has become more popular, so has the ease with which we can access pornography online.Accoring to a study done by Netscape, one of the top 5 searches on all the major search engies has to do with pornography.
God’s view on this is simple: He doesn’t like it. Yet more and more, we see Christians, who know that what they are doing is wrong, downloading and purchasing pornographic materials. Or if they do not do one of those, there is always television. What would have been considered taboo just a few years ago has now become mainstream and make sits way into prime time programming. Just flip through your TV Guide and look at some of the stuff that is on late at night, and you will make yourself sick with how simple it is to get this content. If it is easy t get this, then television stations and simply feeding our addiction with pornography, rather then helping to combat it.Granted many stations are owned by someone in the secular field and so we can not expect them to hold the ideals and morals of the Christian church, but we should at least be able to expect that they will not make it as easy as changing the channel for a 10 year old to find an extremely provocative pornographic movie.
All over the world, we hear of churches that need to implement special programs to make sure that their staff is not accessing this type of material when they are alone in their offices. You may be saying “As a congregation, we should be able to trust our churches staff to be ableto keep themselves from falling into this temptation.” Let all of our pastors and support staff are just as human as we are. They are part of the fallen people just as we are, and as the leadership of the church are under attack from Satan all the more.We must be supportive of our churches decision to implement these programs and understand that it is as much for their spiritual stability as it is for our own. What I mean to say is that if our pastors and falling into this temptation, then the teachings they give us could become void of all meanings because they are at battle with themselves for what they do in their private lives.
At the same time, us of the young adult generation are hit with these tempatations, and they are often at leats double of that which our elders have. This is mainly because we are still developping mentally and can not always be sure we are making the correct choices. My suggestion would be if you feel are urge to do something that you do not believe is what Jesus would have you do, DON’T DO IT! As well, talk to someone that you trust.This could be a pastor, an adult, or one of the spoken-for team. We all go through these types of things and it is helpful to have someone to talk to about it.
So is our generation in trouble? Yes it is. And this trouble will continue on until we find a way that we can use to combat addictions to such things. The trouble will only keep getting worse untilwe do this. We must always remember that God is there for us and will not turn us away from Himself. He long to have a personal relationship with us, and if we are willing to accept His love for us, will always be there. So I ask again, is our generation in troube? Yes, but with the help of God we can battle our way through this attack from Satan and we will emerge victorious. Jesus said “..I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it”. We are the church that Jesus spoke of. He is always building us up and helping us move forward in our faith. Satan may be able to try and trick and deceive us, but always remember that in the end God wins.
The kingdom of God is at hand and if we do not correct the ways of our generation, we may have a bit of trouble with the judgement of God. Step up and let God supernaturally transform you. Let the world know that you will not stand for its ways, that you will not give in to its lustful desires, and that you will be an ambassador for the King of kings.